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KGNU Radio-2 Juanita Hurtado
Denver’s city layoffs to begin August 18
Yesterday, Denver’s mayor sent an email announcing that city layoffs will start on August 18th. This comes as Denver faces a budget deficit of $250 million.
It is unclear how many jobs will be cut. But the mayor said layoffs should be completed in one week.
The City’s Career Services Board policy says employees can expect severance payments and benefits based on merit and years served. However, Denverite reported that employees will have to sign an agreement protecting the city from legal damages before receiving this payment.
This also comes as the City’s Career Services Board drew criticism for reducing protections for senior employees.
Lisa Calderon, who ran against Johnston, told the Denver Gazette that the mayor’s reckless spending is to blame, and sides with workers saying they shouldn’t have to sign the city’s agreement. Calderon added, “These layoffs, timed just before collective bargaining rights take effect, are a deliberate attempt to weaken worker protections.”
This past November, voters passed referral question 2U, which made nearly 7,000 employees not previously in a union eligible for bargaining rights come January of 2026. Denver officials told Colorado Politics that CSB took QUOTE “great care” in ensuring department heads make the right calls in layoff decisions.
Colorado Sues PetSmart for Using Grooming School to Entrap Employees
Despite encouraging its Colorado employees to attend a dog grooming school for free, PetSmart sent collection agencies after these employees left the job. The state is now suing the company hoping to stop them from collecting these employees’ debts.
In the lawsuit, Attorney General Phil Wiser argues PetSmart advertised the grooming academy as free when its actual cost was around $5,000 to $5,500 dollars. Then, employees who left the job within two years of getting their grooming certificate… were charged for at least half of that tuition.
Later, they found out the grooming certificate was not valid anywhere else.
In a statement, Attorney General Weiser said, “PetSmart lured prospective dog groomers with promises of ‘free’ paid training, only to trap them into staying with the company.”
The lawsuit is also looking for PetSmart to pay penalties of up to $50,000 per employee, saying the company violated the Colorado Consumer Protection Act.
Use Of Colorado Red Flag Law Increases
Colorado is seeing an increase in the use of its Red Flag law. This law allows the temporary removal of firearms when someone poses an extreme risk to themselves or someone else.
Colorado’s red flag law, which first went into effect in 2020 and was later enhanced, allows for what is called an ERPO, an Extreme Risk Protection Order. With these orders, guns can be taken away from someone for two weeks.
However, Attorney General Phil Weiser told Denver7 that two weeks is rarely enough time, and that courts are able to extend the Extreme Risk Protection Order.
State data shows that in the first year the Red Flag law was in effect, of 96 ERPOs requested, only 64 were granted. The most recent data, from 2023, shows that 168 ERPO requests were filed and 125 of them were granted.
Attorney General Weiser says the increase shows that more people are aware of ERPOs, and also that Colorado has a high rate of gun violence threats. He said that the Red Flag law is one of the most important gun violence prevention measures in Colorado.
However, Rocky Mountain Gun Owners, a gun rights group, said that red flag laws shred due process, and the idea that someone is innocent until proven guilty. The Attorney General responded, saying that the right to a gun is not absolute.
Colorado Pushback On EPA Rule Change
Environmental groups and Colorado leaders are pushing back against a Trump administration proposal to eliminate a scientific finding that forms the basis for regulations on greenhouse gas emissions.
The administration is also targeting automobile tailpipe emission limits.
This proposal will likely face a lengthy review process and might not be ready until next year.
Dr. Sara Carpenter, the board chair of Healthy Air and Water Colorado, said that the decision to revoke what is known as the endangerment finding, quote, “sacrifices public health to political and corporate agendas.” That is according to the Colorado Sun.
Black Canyon North Rim Reopens
The Black Canyon North Rim of the Gunnison National Park reopened on Wednesday, a day earlier than previously announced. The park had been closed since July 10 after a lightning strike started a south rim wildfire, burning about 4,200 acres.
The South Rim fire is 41% contained, although Fire Management Officer Rusty Stark believes that it won’t grow much larger due to the natural geography of the area.
The South Rim is where the visitor center is located. It remains closed for now, but once deemed safe, park staff will begin opening it up incrementally.
